Which Stack Would You Like
by Minexpert6947
Summary: When the electric bill is jacked because of a *ahem* UNKNOWN reason, Panda has to search for a job in San Francisco, an finds one at the local Pancake Store
1. Chapter 1

Ice Bear was asleep, his head propped back on a pillow, covered by a pillow which had ice packs on top of it. His TV was on playing quiet instrumental music in his ears. He opened his eyes, glancing at the figure skater for half second, before reaching up and turning the thermostat of the refrigerator down, making it's fan blow chilling air on his face and neck. Ice Bear sighed contentedly, then fell asleep again. He lurched awake to the sound of arguing, coming from outside his freezer. Ice Bear Growled and turned on his side, wrapping a pillow around his head to try and muffle the sounds. It didn't work. So instead, he shook the ice off of himself and, with a disapproving grunt, he open the refrigerator door. Not only met by a blast of blinding bright light (making Ice Bear growl), but Panda and Grizz were evidently arguing about something. And it sounded heated. Like out of the frying pan and into the fire heated. Ice grunted and got out of the fridge, shutting the door behind him. He got up and went to the bathroom holding a tray of ice cubes, hoping to make a ice bath. He walked in the bathroom, and, mere seconds after the knowledge of his arrival, Grizz spat out his toothpaste, and walked up to him, ignoring Panda for a few seconds.  
"Bro, you're just what we neeeded!" He exclaimed. "You can stop this fight!"  
"Ice Bear does not wish to be involved"  
"Oh, Dude, come on!" He moaned, " You just have to pick who's right, alright?" Ice Bear thought for a second.  
"Ice Bear will resolve this fight." Grizz gave a look of relief. "If Grizz promises to never wake up Ice Bear before he wants to again." Grizz nodded.  
"Fine. Deal" Grizz took him by the arm, and led him away to the kitchen. Ice Bear made a look back at the Ice tray, which he had managed to put in the bath before Grizz came to get him. Ice Bear sighed. Looks like he won't be getting a bath for a while. Grizz led Ice Bear into the kitchen, where a very grumpy Panda was sitting at the table leaning on his arm, surfing his phone. Grizz spoke up.  
"Pan-Pan, Bro here is going to solve this for us." Panda grunted. Ice Bear turned to Grizz.  
"Ice bear want's to know what's happened."  
"Well..." Said Grizz, " We just got the electric bill back, and that was up by about 50% more than usual -"  
"Ice Bear is confused. We don't pay our bills."  
"We have to. I recently got a letter from the electric company saying they were going to cut of our power if we don't pay the bill off soon"  
"Continue"  
"So I think that Panda has been using up electricity on charging his phone up too much."  
"Ice Bear wants to see proof of this accusation." Grizz picked up the piece of paper, and handed it over to Ice Bear.  
"This is the bill." He explained. It was certainly official. The city crest was hologram, so it wasn't fake. On the bill was a long string of numbers. Ice Bear scanned it until he saw the room labelled "Second Bedroom", which was the room belonging to Panda. Ice Bear did a quick scan of the numbers, then set the piece of paper down.  
"Grizz is correct." Panda was about to protest, but was silence by a look from Ice Bear, "But perhaps for the wrong reason." He referred to the piece of paper again as Grizz and Panda gave a confused look to each other.  
"Although it is true Panda has cost the most money, it does not say why." Grizz scoffed jokingly.  
"Well, what do you say we do, Bro?"  
"Ice Bear thinks Panda should either, sell the phone -" Panda looked up at Ice Bear with the most threatening look he could muster, "Or one of us should get a job to pay for this." Panda looked at Grizz as Grizz looked at Panda.  
"HE IS!" They shouted in unison. Ice Bear shrugged.  
"Ice bear doesn't care who get's a job. Ice Bear needs to do the chores." Grizz nodded.  
"So Littlest Bro will do the chores and Cooking, that's fine."  
"Ice Bear does not approve of that name."  
"So it's up to me or you Panda." Panda shook his head.  
"Uh-Uh, I'm too soft and cushy to be in a line of work."  
"But I didn't cause the bill, did I?" Panda sulked. "So why should I get a job for your mistake?"  
"It's still not fair..." All the bears thought for a second.  
"Ice Bear thinks it should be left to chance." Grizz lit up.  
"Great Idea, Bro, I'll go get our decision machine!"  
"Ice Bear think's he should choose fairly." Grizz sat back down. Ice Bear procured a penny. " Ice Bear thinks we should choose using a coin toss. If you lose, you have to get a job." Grizz nodded.  
"Sound Fair, Pan-Pan?" Panda was still sulking on his phone.  
"As fair as it's going to get..." He said miserably. Ice Bear threw the coin in the air, lodging it in the caves ceiling, and held his paw out. The coin dropped from the ceiling and landed neatly on Ice Bears paw. He covered it before anyone could see.  
"Ice requests your calls." Grizz was quick off the mark.  
"TAILS!" He shouted. Panda gave him a look of disbelief.  
"Guess I'm heads then..." He said. Ice Bear looked at the coin.  
"Well?" Both Bears looked to him in anticipation.  
"Ice Bear would like to request that you both get a job." The Bears both looked confused. Ice Bear removed his paw. The coin was standing on it's side.

Panda and Grizz were walking through the streets, looking for a hiring business.  
"I still think he made that happen." Panda complained.  
"How could he?" reasoned Grizz. "We watched him move his paw, there's no way he could have faked that!" Panda looked back at the ground. He walked to a park bench, looking at the newspaper discarded there.  
"Hey Grizz"  
"Yeah?"  
Maybe we could look in the paper for open jobs." Said Panda, pointing.  
"Great Idea Pan-Pan!" They walked over to the paper, picking it up. "Hey, Comics!"  
"Grizz!"  
"Sorry, sorry..." They both flipped page after page through the comic, looking for some jobs.  
"Hey, what about this place!" exclaimed Panda eventually. He pointed to an advertisement, then read aloud. "Looking for new employee's at Stack your Snack, No experience needed, taught on Job!" Panda ripped the advertisement out planning to take a look. Grizz pointed to another Ad.  
"This one pays really well! It says no experience needed, pays about $50 an hour" Panda looked at the ad.  
"It's construction. Of course that'd be expensive, Grizz." Grizz ripped the ad out of the paper.  
"Well, I'm still going to go take a look." He concluded. They both looked at each other.  
"Good luck with your job" Said Panda.  
"Right back at ya Pan-Pan" The Bears turned and walked in opposite directions to each other.

Panda walked up to a store with two great big windows. It's color scheme seemed to be made up of mainly orange and white, judging by the sign and what he could see of the inside.  
"Well, it doesn't look so bad, I guess.." Panda said to on two legs, he walked in. Instantly, the aroma of fresh bakery assaulted his nostrils, and Panda almost fell to he floor in an epiphany of pleasure. The pancakes that were evidently baking behind the counter smelt delectable, yet there only 3 or 4 people in the store, excluding the staff. Panda managed to stay on his feet and walked up to the counter. A boy with Purple dyed hair stood behind the counter, looking bored on his face, but sounding upbeat.  
"Hi, Welcome to Stack your snack, the best pancakes in San Francisco! What can I get ya?" He exclaimed.  
"oh, um, I'm not here to eat, I'm here for the newspaper Ad?" Panda Replied, setting the Ad on the counter. The Boy nodded.  
"Sure, let me get the on-site manager" The Boy pushed on a door, and disappeared through it, leaving Panda to look at the samples in the glass container under the counter.  
Panda softly uttered his amazement to himself. These all looked like something Ice Bear would be able to cook up. There about 4 different samples in the container, and, had Panda been told to pick one over the others, he wouldn't have been able to. Thick Golden Pancakes topped with round blueberries leaking purple juice stood in a tall stack next to a plate of three thin pancakes, rolled up together with chocolate oozing out of each end. Panda could feel his mouth water at the delicious sight. A voice suddenly rang out from above him.  
"Enjoying the view?" Panda jolted upwards, banging his head on the counters overhang as he did so. The voice was female, and gasped at him. "Oh My Goodness, I'm so sorry! Are you O.K?" She said worryingly. "Let me get you some ice!"  
"No. It hurts but, it's okay."  
"Oh, Are you sure?" She said, evidently still worried. Panda shook her off.  
"Yeah, I'm fine. I'm here for the job application anyway." He said, rubbing the back of his head, and pointing to the newspaper clipping on the table.  
"OH! O.K, yeah, you're hired. It's not that well of paying though... It's only about $20.50 an hour..." She said doubtfully. "I'm sorry, but that's all I can offer. That and a discount on every other day." Panda's eye's grew wide.  
"DEAL" He said quickly. "They look delicious!" The girl was blonde, and looked about 20, 25 years old, by Panda's guess. She was wearing a black, long-sleeved shirt, covered by a Orange Apron that looked a lot like Ice Bears, only a different color. She wore bleached denim jeans which brought out her light hair, and the syrup stains on her jeans. She lifted up a section of the counter and let him through, and started to explain what went on in the backgrounds of the bakery.  
"So, the uniform is fairly relaxed, you just have to wear the Orange apron that says 'Stack Your Snack' and you can wear pretty much anything else with it. Try to bring old clothes though, you're going to get pretty sticky. You have to wash your hands before setting your paws -" She looked at Panda, "literally, your paws, anywhere near the food. And no eating during the day, not until lunch, and when you leave. We'll let you buy from the menu during the break, or you can head home if you want, just as long as you're back before break's over." She stopped and turned to Panda.  
"Any questions?" she said finally. Panda shook his head."Great, welcome to Stack your Snack. Let me introduce you to the team that's here right now. My names Rochelle, by the way." Rochelle led Panda to the kitchen, where the was a Brown haired man flipping multiple pancakes, with spatulas in both hands. He was tall, about 6 feet, and 5 inches, and tanned slightly. He didn't look up as they entered the kitchen.  
"New Order?" He said. His voice was rough, and he spoke with a slight hardness.  
"Nope, new worker." Said Rochelle, "Meet Panda. Panda this is Ross. He cooks in the mornings, until 2 o'clock. He's the best out of all of them, and can run about 4 orders at once. Still, other cooks come in, and help for the Rush Hours." Panda looked at her.  
"Rush Hours?" Rochelle smacked her own forehead.  
"Right, I forgot to mention. There are two rush Hours each day, at about 12 pm until 1 pm, and 3 pm until 4 pm, where people from work come here to eat something sweet, and kids are on their way home for a treat. It's pretty dead right now, but trust me, It gets pretty crazy around here." Panda nodded. Rochelle led him from the kitchen. "Follow me, I think you've already met Jesse, right?" Panda trailed after her.  
"I don't really know..." Panda walked back out to the counter, to find the Purple haired boy standing there.  
"Hi, I'm Jesse!" He said, offering his hand. "I take it you've got the job?" Panda took his hand.  
"Yeah..." Jesse smiled.  
"That's great!" He said, "Can you cook?"  
"Not really, my Brother cooks for me, he enjoys doing it..." Jesse smiled even wider.  
"That means you'll be working the counter with me!" Jesse explained, "I look forward to it." Rochelle took over for him.  
"Jesse is the friendliest guy I've met, but I've seen him get nasty towards a few disruptive customers, trust me." She explained. "Best Cashier Jockey we've had for a while..." Rochelle led him outside of the diner and back to the real world.  
"You can't start right now, I have to get an apron for you, and some gloves, cause let's face it, You'll get hair on the pancakes" She said, smirking slightly. Panda looked to his feet. "I'm Joking. You'l still get glove just in case."  
"So when do I start?" Asked Panda. Rochelle thought for a second. Come in at 11 am tomorrow. I'll have everything you'll need by then." Panda nodded.  
"I'll see you then!" He said, starting down the road. Rochelle waved goodbye.  
"See Ya! I'll see ya tomorrow!" Panda waved back, already rushing back to the cave to tell Ice Bear about the good news.

"Panda is home early..." Remarked Ice Bear as he let panda through the door, wearing his almost symbolic green Apron. "Did Panda give up?" Panda smirked at him.  
"No, I got a job!" He exclaimed. "I start at 11 am, tomorrow, they have to get some supplies for me to work." Ice Bear nodded.  
"Ice Bear is proud of his Brother." He said turning away to carry on dusting the Television. Panda walked over to the Sofa and flopped down on it.  
"I kinda can't wait..." He said, almost to himself.  
"Ice Bear wants to know about Pandas new job." Said Ice Bear, still dusting the Television.  
"Oh, Um, OK..." Stuttered Panda. "It's at the this place, a while north from here, Stack you Snack." Ice Bear nodded.  
"Ice Bear has heard of it."  
"They make pancakes there." explained Panda, "And I'm going to be what they call a 'Cashier Jockey'"  
"Panda is going to be worker at a cashier?" He asked. "For how much?"  
"Um... About 20 Dollars an hour." replied Panda. "I think so anyway." Ice Bear turned to face his Brother.  
"Ice Bear Approves of Panda's new job."


	2. Chapter 2

"Panda, wake up"  
"Wuh..?"  
"It's time for work"  
"Give me five more minutes.."  
"It's Ten thirty." Panda jolted awake, swinging around in his bed to face his awakening, which turned out to be Ice Bear.  
"Wait, What?!" He yelled.  
"Ice Bear said it was ten thirty" Panda started to panic as he fell out of bed.  
"Oh no, I'm going to be late for work..." He untangled himself from his bedsheet, and got up, feeling around himself. "Where are my contacts?"  
"Ice Bear has them." Ice Bear raised a paw, on them being Panda's contact lenses. Panda quickly grabbed them, slipping them in as quickly as he could.  
"Thanks, bro" Panda shut his eye's, allowing the contacts to settle in place.  
"Ice Bear has Panda's breakfast ready." Panda turned, grabbing his phone.  
"I'm really sorry dude, but I'm going to have to skip." He explained hurriedly, " I'll eat it when I get home, OK?" Panda dashed through the front door, running through the woods towards the city. Ice Bear walked over to the door, watching sprint through the forest around the Cave- House. Ice Bear shut the door gently, then walked into the kitchen, looking at the large stack of pancakes sadly.  
"Ice Bear will clean up..."

Panda came to a slowing stop outside Stack Your Snack. Rochelle saw him from behind the counter, and waved him inside. Panda pushed the door open and walked in.  
"Hey..." he said, "What time is it?" Rochelle made a glance at her watch.  
"11:05" She said, eyebrow raised. Panda groaned. "It's okay, we'll overlook 5 minutes, but if you come more than 15 minutes, late, you're outta here." She raised the counter for him to come behind the glass. Panda went behind the glass.  
"Where's Jesse?" He asked, puzzled.  
"He's not coming in until midday." explained Rochelle. "So you'll be working with me" she said smiling. Panda tried to return the smile, but he was sure he managed to turn it into a grimace somehow. Luckily, Rochelle didn't see, being distracted by the bell that alerted the arrival of new customer. Panda took a quick look around him. The Cafe was empty, except for the two woman drinking a steaming cup of something that was probably coffee. Panda looked behind the counter to see Ross, leaning on the counter, cradling a bottle of water, waiting for the next order. Then finally he looked down, and realized, he didn't know how to use any of the buttons on the Cash Register, excluding the number buttons. He looked around himself again. Rochelle was busy serving a new customer, so that only left...  
"Hey, Ross?" Panda yelled. "How do you..?" Ross came out from the kitchen.  
"Use the cash register?" He finished. Panda nodded. Ross sighed. "Well, it's confusing at first, but you get the hang of it real fast..." Ross walked up beside Panda, leaning on the counter beside him, and Panda was forcefully reminded of his brother, Grizz. Ross pointed to a button in the top left of the register.  
"You use this button to start a new order, so you don't accidentally charge someone with the same order the last guy got." He moved over to a bunch of other buttons, "These are for special offers, like Half off, Two for one, and all that. I'm sure you can figure out the calculator buttons there, and finally, this button on the side..." Ross pointed out the button that stuck out slightly, "...is the button you press to open the register and place the cash inside. It also measures the cash put in,so don't think of pocketing any of it for yourself"  
"The thought never crossed my mind"  
"Yeah, sure." Ross picked up a piece of laminated paper, that was left just under the counter. "You use this to check the prices, without having to look up at the menu behind you and let some people reach into the register and steal some cash."  
"OK, got it, thanks Ross."  
"Once you get the receipt, write down their table number on it, and pin it up, so I can make it and you'll bring it out to them, so make sure you remember their table number."  
"OK, thanks Ross." Ross started back to the kitchen  
"And don't worry about tax, the register calculates it automatically for you."  
"Uh.. Thanks Ross." Ross disappeared behind the doors to the kitchen again. Panda looked back down at the cash register, trying to commit each of the buttons to memory. Rochelle tapped him on the shoulder.  
"I nearly forgot, here." She held up a orange apron. "It's your uniform, so remember to bring it in every day." Panda slipped it over his head, but struggled to tie the knot behind his back. Rochelle giggled. "Here let me..." Panda turned away from her, and she tied the knot tightly in a double.  
"There." She said, making the final loop. "Better?" Panda adjusted the apron slightly.  
"Yeah..." Panda looked up at her. "Thank You" Rochelle turned away from him, putting some cash in the register.  
"No problem." she looked up at the ring of the bell. "How's about you take these ones, Panda?" Panda looked to the door, seeing the two man walking through the door, chatting to each other happily.  
"Oh.. um, OK.." Panda looked up nervously. The men walked up to the end of the waiting line, waiting for someone to call them forward.  
"O-over here, sirs..." Said Panda in a quiet voice. The men looked round, then stepped forward to Panda's claimed piece of counter, and were quick to speak.  
"One Blueberry Coffee and one Lemon Iced Tea," The man turned to his companion, "Do you want something to eat, before this place fills for lunch?"  
"Nah, I thought we were gonna get pizza..." Said the companion, evidently confused.  
"No, yeah, but did you wan't anything else" Panda cleared his throat.  
"Could you please tell me what you would like to order?" The man looked to his companion. He shrugged.  
"I'll wait."  
"Just the drinks please." finalized the man.  
"Okay, so a Blueberry Coffee, and a Lemon Iced Tea?" confirmed Panda.  
"Uhh, yeah..." Panda looked at the sheet, like Ross told him to, found the price, like Ross told him to, and punched it in, like Ross told him to, and made the receipt, like Ross told him to. He pinned it up behind him on the board, and, Ross, just like promised, looked at it and started stirring the drinks. Panda waved the men off to their table, who ambled over slowly, chatting as they did so. Panda waited at the counter for Ross to finish the drinks.  
"Good Job..." Panda looked around himself.  
"Hmm? Rochelle, did you say something?" Rochelle looked at him.  
"No" She cocked her head. "Why?"  
"I thought I-" Panda started, then turned. "Ross, did yo-"  
"Order 12!" He interrupted, thrusting the drinks towards him.  
"Oh, Um," stuttered Panda, caught off guard. "Thanks." Panda turned towards the table, then looked down at the receipt. "Uh... Um, which table..." Panda looked around him, then back at the receipt, which Panda had forgotten to write the table number on.

"Blueberry Coffee and Lemon Iced Tea?" offered Panda, slightly desperately, only to be disappointed by shakes of heads and negative responses.  
"Oh man... where are they?" wondered Panda to himself, wanting to kick himself for allowing such blatant stupidity on such a simple order. Then, finally, he felt he saw them, sitting by the door. Panda moved closer. It was definitely them, but one of them seemed to be... crying? Panda came and set the tray before them.  
"Is everything OK?" The crying one waved him off, but the other one called him closer.  
"I think we need some alone time but..." the man said furtively, "something very... sensitive was just found out."  
"Really?" said Panda sincerely. "what happened?" The man looked to his crying companion, who, still leaking tears nodded him on.  
"His girlfriend just broke up with him... over text..." The man whispered, looked around like it was completely confidential, "By Text..."  
"I thought she was the one... I was going to propose!" The man started to sob. Panda grimaced at the sight, then looked at Rochelle, who, looking back, got the gist of what was going on. She waved him on, looking concerned. Panda set the tray down and put his arm around the crying man gently.  
"She obviously wasn't. She couldn't have been strong enough for you..."  
"But she was able to support herself!" The man cried, still sobbing. "I should have seen it coming!"  
"If she's such a strong woman, how come she couldn't muster the strength to break up with in person? Why by text?" The man stopped sobbing.  
"Y'know, that actually helps..." Said the man, wiping his eye's with a table tissue. "Thank you..." The man took his Iced Tea with both hands and sipping at it. Panda smiled and stood up. The mans friend, holding a coffee looked up at him and mouthed the words "Thank You" to him from the other side of the table. Panda bowed, as if to say "It was my pleasure" Panda stood up, and walked back to the counter. Rochelle met him at the folding portion, giving him a playful punch on the arm.  
"Dude!" She said, astounded, "That was amazing! How did you calm him down. Panda could feel the blood rush to his cheeks.  
"It was a topic I'm quite familiar with..." he explained, then turned towards the register again, glancing nervously towards Rochelle. Rochelle smiled.  
"Oh, really?" she said cunningly. "And what was this familiar topic that made a grown man cry so much that only a talking panda in a orange apron could cheer him up?" Panda could feel the blood rush to his cheeks even more, and he hoped it wasn't visible through his white fur. He mumbled something inaudible. Then turned away, only to find Ross leaning through the serving table, listening intently.  
"You too?!" He yelled at him. Ross shrugged.  
"I may not look it, but I'm very much into gossip..." he explained half-heartedly. Panda sighed, and turned around at the tinkle of the bell. to see a familiar purple-haired boy walking through the door. Panda waved, eager to leave the awkward conversation.  
"Hey Jesse!" Jesse looked back at Panda, and waved back, already smiling.  
"Hey Panda!" He moved behind the counter, taking off his scarf. Panda cocked his head.  
"Isn't it a bit warm for a scarf?" He asked, confused. Jesse shrugged.  
"It's how people recognize me. At my flats, quite a few people have dyed hair, so..." Jesse explained clearly.  
"Ah I see..." Panda looked him up and down. "So why the big coat?"  
"I just like this coat..." He said, pulling the collars of a thick dark brown coat closer to his neck. A voice came from behind him.  
"E-excuse me?" Jesse moved aside to reveal the man Panda had comforted earlier. He dropped a 5 dollar bill in the "TIPS" jar. "Thank you for helping me with my girlfriend troubles." Rochelle and Ross gave a Panda a sidelong look, who pretended not to notice, even though he could feel his cheeks turning red.  
"N-No Problem.." The man backed away, and left the cafe. Rochelle was quick to hone in on Panda.  
"So, who's the lucky girl?"  
"Lucky?" said Panda, confused, "What?"  
'Well, any woman would be lucky to have such a cute boyfriend, y'know?" She said, almost as if explaining to a 5 year old boy. "It's kinda obvious that you have a girlfriend, to be honest." Panda didn't answer, instead focusing intently on a single button on the cash register. Rochelle gasped. "You don't mean..." Panda nodded. Rochelle pulled out her phone, and started doing something on it, looking worried.  
"I've been on a dating site for months, but no one has wanted to approach me..." He said sadly. "Maybe I should just give up." Rochelle put her phone down, then looked up at the ceiling innocently. Panda looked at her.  
"What? You look like you know something..." He said accusingly, " What do you know?"  
"Nothing..." Panda's phone rang a small chime. Panda froze, stuck by shock.  
"Did you.. Is that..?" Rochelle looked at him.  
"I'll let you check that this one time," she said sternly, raising a single finger, "but another time, and it's mine until the end of your shift." She turned away from him. Panda whipped out his phone and gasped. There was a match.. Panda quickly unlocked his phone and checked it and nearly dropped his phone.  
"So? How about it?" Asked Rochelle, "Wanna go out for donuts sometime?"

After work, Panda walked through the door of the cave-house, eyes still wide from shock. Ice Bear stood there with the plate of Pancakes in his hands.  
"Is Panda ready for breakfast now?" he asked. Panda's only response sounded like "UhhmmmIothun". Ice Bear cocked his head.  
"Ice Bear is worried." Ice Bear put the pancakes on the table, and guided Panda over to the seat in front of them. "Panda should eat. You haven't eaten all day." Panda got up, clearing his throat.  
"I-I'm not hungry." he said, and, with that, left the room. Ice bear looked down at the floor sadly, hoping he wasn't losing his brothers. Just then, Grizz walked through the door, still wearing his hard hat for work.  
"Hey Bro," He said nonchalantly, before spying the pancakes that Ice Bear was sitting next to. "Hey, are those pancakes? Can I..." Ice Bear pushed the stack towards him, then got up and left, opening the freezer door and disappearing inside. Grizz looked around him, suddenly alone.  
"Was it something I said?"


	3. Chapter 3

Panda woke up, drooling all over his pillow. He grunted and looked around himself, then flopped back into his pillow. He slowly raised himself out of bed looking out of his window, listening to the early morning chirruping of the forest birds. He shut his eyes, rubbing them of sleep. Then snapped them open again, jumping out of bed suddenly.  
"Work" He muttered to himself, rushing to the bathroom, banging into his door frame as he rushed to the bathroom to get his contacts. He banged into Ice Bear on his way to the Bathroom. Panda quickly apologized, and made his way to the sink, feeling around the edge for his Contact lens case, unscrewing it and slipping them in. He slipped a mint in his mouth, instead of toothpaste, just for the minty smell. Panda left the bathroom, and walked to the kitchen. Ice Bear already had his apron on and was cooking. Panda took a quick sniff and looked around at him, who was visibly sweating as he turned the heat up. Panda cocked his head.  
"Hey Bro," He asked, his curiosity piqued. "whatcha doin'?" Ice Bear didn't look around as he flicked the pan into the air, splattering the batter through the air, but catching it in a perfect circle, and setting it back down on the stove, then speaking as Panda stared wide-eyed at the spectacle.  
"Ice Bear is cooking for Panda." Panda watched and he performed the action again, not allowing each side to cook perfectly. Taking one hand of of the frying pan he picked up a bottle of chocolate sauce and covered the nozzle with a finger from his paw as he squirted it, spraying it out evenly. He then repeated the same action as before, creating a arc of chocolate and golden brown batter through the air above him. He caught it again, then set it back on the stove, and turned the heat off. He picked up a plate of pancakes, stacked to about 4 or five more. Ice Bear flicked the pan up, then tossed aside into the sink, then caught the flying pancake on the plate of the others. He turned to Panda holding the plate of pancakes towards him.  
"Syrup is not needed," Ice bear said to him.  
"Umm... OK..." Panda sat down at his spot on the table. He picked up a fork, and stabbed into the pancake, putting it whole into his mouth, and bit down. When Ice Bear said it didn't need syrup, he wasn't kidding. The chocolate sauce squirted out from the inside in a gooey mess. Panda chewed slowly, and swallowed, before exclaiming,  
"Dude! This is awesome" Panda began to gulp down on his Pancakes. Ice Bear turned and started to wash the pans used for it. Panda finished the stack, and Ice Bear picked the plate, slick with chocolate sauce and began to wash up that up too. Panda was halfway to the door, grabbing the orange apron/uniform off of it's hook, but spotted the trash can. Inside was filled up halfway, filled with obviously rejected specimens of pancake, leaking chocolate sauce, burnt, undercooked, everything that could go wrong was in the bin. Panda looked back back at Ice Bear, and, looking closely, could see tiredness plaguing his eyes. How long had he been awake, making pancakes for Panda? Panda dropped his apron on the counter, and sat down on it.  
"Hey Dude," He asked. "How long have you been up?" Ice Bear didn't look around.  
"Panda will be late for work" He replied, not showing any break. Panda waved him off.  
"It's fine, I've got at least fifteen minutes left." he said nonchalantly. "So, How long have you been up?" Ice Bear didn't speak for a couple seconds, then he stopped.  
"Ice Bear thinks Panda should get out."

Panda walked up to the front door of Stack Your Snack, still puzzling over Ice Bears awkward behavior that morning. He walked the door, and waved to Rochelle. He walked up and lifted the counter for himself, still visibly puzzled over Ice Bear. Rochelle picked up on this, and questioned him about it.  
"You don't seem like what you've been normally." She said. "What's wrong Panda?" Panda stared straight ahead.  
"N-Nothing don't worry." Rochelle looked at him skeptically. Panda broke.  
"OK, It's my Brother, he made me these really delicious pancakes this morning, but I spotted a ton of one's that didn't go the way he wanted in the trash, and he had bags under his eyes, so I'm really worried about him, and -" Panda began, but was cut off by Rochelle putting a finger to his lips. And began to speak.  
"Sounds to me that you told him where you work, and he knows the place," She raised an eyebrow questioningly to Panda, who nodded, before she continued, "And from I remember you telling me, he's a really good cook, so he probably got jealous, and thought that he might lose you to out cooking, so he went all out, found a really good recipe, and stayed up all night trying to perfect it for you, to try and win you back from me..." Panda simply stared at her. She winked at him. "Girls know about these things" She turned to the door and pointed to the door, somewhat melodramatically.  
"Go to him, Panda, be with your brother comfort him!" She dropped her arm, returning to the cash register. "I'll cover your shift..." Panda nodded.  
"Thanks Rochelle" Rochelle nodded.  
"And Panda?"  
"Hmm?"  
"Don't forget our date on Sunday"

Ice bear was lying sideways on the couch with a ice pack under his head as a pillow, sound asleep, when there was a knock at the door. He jolted awake, and trudged to the front door. she slid the capture lock off, and opened it slowly, to find his brother standing there, panting slightly.  
"Bro... I'm s..." He stopped for breath. Ice Bear stood there patiently, waiting for him to stand up again. Panda stood up slowly, clutching his chest, and tried to speak again.  
"Dude I'm..." He bent over again. Ice Bear's Brow furrowed, trying to understand his brother. Panda stood upright again, but instead of trying to speak once more, he pulled Ice Bear into a tight hug. Ice Bear stood there for a few seconds, eye's wide. Panda was finally able to speak again.  
"I'm so sorry, Bro!" He exclaimed, "I've been ignoring you so much, and you've been trying to attract my attention, but you don't have to, because you're my brother, and brothers stick together, no matter what!" Panda stood there in silence. Before Ice Bear spoke.  
"Ice Bear thinks this is getting awkward." Panda broke apart, laughing slightly. "Shouldn't Panda be at work?"  
"I was given the day off." he explained.  
"Ice Bear is glad." Said Ice Bear, quietly. Panda looked to him.  
"Did you say something dude?"  
"Ice Bear didn't say anything."


	4. Chapter 4

Panda got up, looking at the clock which read as it being Eight Thirty. Panda turned away from the clock, and shuffled through the hall into the bathroom. It was Saturday, so he didn't have work today or tomorrow, but he still had that date with Rochelle to go on, but he didn't have to worry until tomorrow. He got up and walked out to find Ice Bear cooking pancakes the same way as yesterday, splattering the batter through the air. Panda groaned.  
"I thought I told you," Panda said grudgingly as he took a seat at the table, "You don't have to try that hard to get my attention." Ice Bear shook his head.  
"Ice Bear is enjoying himself." he replied nonchalantly, taking one paw off the frying pan, and pointing to a spot just behind Panda. Panda turned, and his jaw was stack after Stack after Stack of the fancy pancakes, heaped in piles of, at least, 8 on each took a look at one of the gigantic stacks, each one a rich golden brown, letting out a low whistle.  
"Wow," he said, evidently astounded, "Me and Grizz are going to have a job eating all these stacks, you know that, right?" Ice Bear didn't respond, instead tying a headband around his forehead, to catch the sweat from falling into the frying pan, and opening the front door, allowing the trapped steam some escape form the boiling room. Panda picked up a stack of pancake, and noticed that each of them was different.  
"Er.. Bro?" he inquired, holding a bright green pancake, "What's up with this pancake?" Ice Bear glanced at him, then the pancake.  
"Ice Bear was experimenting flavors..." he explained as he turned back to the frying pan, and the currently cooking pancake. Panda grimaced, and raised the pancake to his mouth, hesitant to eat it, but, placing trust in his brothers cooking, Panda took a bite. For a second nothing happened, but Panda could feel the flavor seep out of the pancake. Then, suddenly his eyes watered and his face screwed up.  
"Uhh, Bro?" He said barely able to speak. Ice Bear turned off the stove, flipping the pancake up one last time. He set the frying pan aside, then turned to Panda.  
"Wh- What's in this Pancake?" Ice Bear walked over to Panda, and took the remaining piece of he pancake and took a sniff. Instantly, Ice Bears face screwed up, and he threw the Pancake into the trash can. Panda looked at him through still watering eyes questioningly. Ice Bear looked at him sadly.  
"That Pancake was triple concentrated Lime juice.." He said. "Ice Bear found out it was one of the most sour things." He bowed his head. "Ice Bear regrets much..." Ice Bear returned to the stack of pancakes next to the grill. Panda was about to continue chomping on the mismatched pancakes, when Grizz's messy form appeared at the door, rubbing his eyes open. Panda stopped, mouth open, and looked at him.  
"Good morning Grizz!" He said cheerfully, still slightly rasping from the lime taste.  
"G'mornin' Pan-Pan.." replied Grizz, the sleep not quite gone from his voice. He removed his paws from his eyes, which, after about a second of processing the kitchen, grew wide. "Wh-What is this?" Panda shrugged.  
"I guess little Bro found a hobby"  
"Don't call Ice Bear Little Bro"

After a long morning of testing Ice Bears "experiments", Panda flopped down next to Grizz on the sofa in the front room, patting his stomach. Grizz grabbed the remote and flicked the TV on. Ice Bear walked in and sat, paws on his lap, watching the TV silently. Halfway through Grizz's hearty laughs, the doorbell rang. Grizz leapt to his feet.  
"It's probably Chloe, with more Gummies!" he said excitedly. "I'll get it!" Grizz launched out of the door, and Panda relaxed again. Grizz shouted to him from the hallway.  
"Panda, It's for you!" Panda groaned.  
"Coming!" He shouted, raising himself from the sofa and trudging out of it. He heard Ice Bear flop over on the sofa as he left. Panda entered the hallway, and looked at the door.  
"HOW DO YOU KNOW WHERE I LIVE?" he half shouted at Rochelle, who was standing at the door. She shrugged.  
"It's in the employee records" she explained nonchalantly, before changing the mood suddenly, "Is that how you welcome your boss and girlfriend to your house?!" Grizz stepped back, eyes wide, and tried to speak.  
"Woah, wait, Girlfriend?" Grizz looked at Panda, eye's wide, "What doe's she-" Panda cut him off.  
"How are we couple if we haven't even dated yet?" interrupted Panda (Grizz: "Hold on a sec-")  
"So what about our date tomorrow?" she asked crossing her arms (Grizz: "Wait, you have a date Pan-P-")  
"That's fair enough, but we haven't dated yet!" He said, crossing his arms back at while trying to keep a straight face at such a stupid argument. Grizz looked back at forth at each of them, then spoke, confused.  
"What's going on here?" Both Rochelle and Panda Broke out laughing at him. Panda invited her in.  
"Sorry, I was just surprised to see you here" Rochelle walked through the doorstep, and Grizz slowly shut the door. Rochelle, still giggling slightly, walked up to him, and pulled him into a friendly hug. Panda, caught off guard, looked to Grizz for help, who shrugged. Panda, blushing violently, raised his arms, and put them around Rochelle awkwardly. Ice Bear quickly came to his rescue.  
"Ice Bear is confused..." Panda was quick to break apart and turn to his brother.  
"Ah... Little Bro! (Ice Bear:"Don't call Ice Bear Little Bro") this is Rochelle. She's my boss" Panda gulped, looking at Rochelle, who walked forward, to hug Ice Bear too. Ice Bear abruptly bowed.  
"Kon'nichiwa" He said, interrupting her attempt at a hug. Rochelle, stopped, shocked stock still, before leaning down to his height as well, staring at him. Ice Bear looked up, expecting a reply, but jolted, finding her face so close to his. He snapped upright.  
"Ice Bear must go clean something." He said, trying to hide his blushing face with his fur as he left hurriedly. Rochelle, who didn't notice, cocked her head as she watched him go.  
"What with him?" she asked, Pointing a thumb at the gaping doorway. Both Panda and Grizz shrugged. Panda walked her in.  
"You have some good timing actually..." He explained to her, leading her through the haphazard mess of the front room, and into the kitchen. "Bro made a LOT of pancakes today!" He said presenting the still towering stacks of pancakes. Rochelle's jaw dropped.  
"A-all these?" Panda nodded. "This morning?" Panda nodded again. "Can I try some" Panda shrugged.  
"LITTLE BRO?" He shouted, "Can Rochelle try your pancakes?!" Ice Bear appeared at the door, half concealed at the hall.  
"Don't call Ice Bear little Bro" he said. "Rochelle may try 3 pancakes..." Rochelle's face fell. Panda was quick to comfort her.  
"They're really good though, and they're all diffe-" he began, but was interrupted by Ice Bear, who walked forward, towards a stack of pancakes with a ghost of a smile on his face.  
"Rochelle may have more..." He said, pulling a green pancake off the stack, "If she tries this one first."


End file.
